Randy Ruiz

Randy Radames Ruiz (born October 19, 1977) is an American former professional baseball designated hitter and first baseman. He stands 6'1" and weighs 240 pounds. Born in The Bronx, New York to parents from Santurce, Puerto Rico, he attended James Monroe High School, and played baseball under coach Mike Turo. He then attended Bellevue University in Bellevue, Nebraska, where he played college level baseball. Ruiz was originally drafted by the New York Mets in the 36th round (1,068th overall) of the 1996 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign.

In Minor League Baseball, he played in the Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies (twice), New York Yankees, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, and San Francisco Giants organizations. In 2008, Ruiz was called up to play in Major League Baseball with the Minnesota Twins, and he also later spent time with the Toronto Blue Jays. During the offseason, he played for the Indios de Mayagüez in the Puerto Rico Baseball League.

Career

Cincinnati Reds Ruiz spent nine baseball seasons with seven different franchises in Minor League Baseball. On July 11, , he was signed to the Cincinnati Reds organization as a non-drafted free agent. He made his professional debut that year, playing in 33 games for the Gulf Coast Reds and two games for Single-A Clinton LumberKings.

In , Ruiz won the Pioneer League batting title with the Billings Mustangs, and was named to the league's post-season All-Star squad. He batted .381 with 10 home runs and 55 RBI in just 61 games. Ruiz also ranked fourth in the league in hits (88) and slugging percentage (.584). Failing a second drug test, Ruiz had to serve a 30-day suspension under the guidelines of the substance abuse policy again. On April 23, Ruiz signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees. He was assigned to the Double-A Trenton Thunder, where he batted .286 with 26 home runs and 87 RBI in 119 games. The Twins recognized Ruiz as the organization's Minor League Player of the Month of June. He had a batting average of .441, with three home runs and 12 RBI during his last ten games with the Red Wings, before being called up by the Twins to play in the major leagues. Liriano and Ruiz were eating together at a restaurant when they heard about the call-up. The Twins designated them to replace right-handed pitcher Liván Hernández and outfielder Craig Monroe, making them free agents. That night, he made his major league debut for the Twins at age 30 as the designated hitter. The Cleveland Indians were playing against the Twins at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome with 33,709 people attending the game. Ruiz had three plate appearances, getting his first major league hit on his third at bat He also hit his first major league home run on August 27, 2008, off of Seattle Mariners' pitcher, Ryan Rowland-Smith, only hours after he was named the International League Rookie of the Year. "Feels great, but I'm really down right now because we lost," Ruiz said. "We had a runner at second there and no outs. I should have been up there moving him over."

Toronto Blue Jays Ruiz signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on December 17, 2008. He began the season playing with the Las Vegas 51s in the Pacific Coast League, where he was selected to play in the 2009 Triple-A All-Star Game. Through 114 games with Las Vegas, Ruiz was having one of the best offensive seasons of any player in the PCL, with a .320 batting average, 81 runs scored, 43 doubles, 25 homers, 106 runs batted in, 270 total bases, a .392 on-base percentage, and a .584 slugging average.

Ruiz was called up to the Blue Jays major league roster on August 11, replacing Alex Ríos, who was claimed on waivers by the Chicago White Sox. Toronto was in New York at the time, to face the New York Yankees at the new Yankee Stadium, only a few blocks from where Ruiz had grown up. After striking out in his first at bat, Ruiz hit his first home run as a Blue Jay off Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain in the third inning of a 7–5 loss. Ruiz duplicated the feat the next day, homering in the second inning off ex-Jay A. J. Burnett. On September 6, in a home game against the Yankees, former Blue Jay Josh Towers threw a ball up and in that hit Ruiz in the face. He walked off on his own power, receiving a standing ovation and waving to the crowd. He finished the 2009 season batting .313 with 10 home runs and 17 RBI in 33 games.

Tohoku Rakuten Eagles After being granted his release from Toronto on May 19, 2010, Ruiz subsequently signed a one-year, $493,000 contract with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). In 81 games with the Eagles, he batted .266 with 12 home runs and 38 RBI.

Arizona Diamondbacks On March 7, 2012, Ruiz signed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was optioned to the Triple-A Reno Aces, where he started strong, batting .372 with three doubles, six home runs and 23 RBI in 21 April games. On May 2, the Diamondbacks announced that Ruiz had been named their Minor League Player of the Month for his performance in April. Ruiz was released by the Diamondbacks organization on June 11. In 49 games with Reno, he hit .332 with 14 home runs and 53 RBI. In 71 games for the RailRiders, Ruiz posted a .274 batting average, 17 home runs and 42 RBI.